In order to carry out smooth coupling of electrical connectors, which may have a high fitting resistance due to the large number of terminals, multiple-terminal connectors utilise a cam operation driven by movement of a lever. In order to support the tabs of male terminal fittings and to temporarily fix their position, a moving plate has been provided on a male connector housing, which plate moves from an advance to a retracted position with the tabs passing through it. This type of connector is described in the Laid-Open Japanese patent publication 5-74517.
An example of this type of connector is shown in FIGS. 7 to 9 of this specification. A connector is provided with a cam pin 2 on the female connector housing 1, a cam pin 4 also being provided on a moving plate 3. These cam pins 2 and 4 fit with cam grooves 6 and 7 of a lever 5. When the lever 5 is rotated, the cam pins 2 and 4 are respectively engaged with the cam grooves 6 and 7 and the female connector housing 1 is drawn towards the male connector housing 8 with the moving plate 3. Thus the projecting tabs are supported whilst they are exposed.
However, in the conventional connector described above, since the cam pins 2 and 4 of the female connector housing 1 and the moving plate 3 engage separate cam grooves 6 and 7, and because the cam grooves 6 and 7 are provided on the lever 5, this lever 5 is rather wide.
The present invention has been developed after taking the above problem into consideration, and aims to present a miniaturised lever which moves the moving plate and the female connector housing in accompaniment with the cam operation thereof.